Jaune grunted as he adjusted his bag over his shoulder. Why did he have to drag around all these books? Oh yeah, because otherwise he'd fall behind, and if he screwed up just one subject, well, he didn't want to have the nasty surprise of his scholarship being yanked.
And it didn't help he was still distracted by what that guy had said. He had been called hot, and he didn't even get realize it until Pyrrha stammered it out. Jaune was still a bit flustered, given he hadn't even met the man before.
That woman he was with...he had seen her though. Cinder, he found out her name was. She was an older student, like in her last year of university, but was in an accident and just got back from recovering. It was honestly more than Jaune thought he had any right to know, that anyone should know, but he felt sorry for her even if she was kind of scary.
She kept to herself, and he'd seen her hanging out with a gray-haired boy and green-haired girl, but didn't get the feeling they were actually friends. Could be wrong, he'd been wrong before.
The knowledge he did have of Cinder though wasn't enough to prepare seeing her walk out of a dorm-hers, most likely. Oh, and just to add to the embarassement, he almost crashed into her.
"I-I-I'm so sorry! I didn't see you, I swear!" Jaune hated how his voice cracked, but even with one eye still covered, the anger and disdain in Cinder's gaze made him feel small and insignicant. To her, he was.
"Maybe you should watch where you're going." she said, her voice quiet but menacing.
"I said I was sorry, and it's not like I meant to bump into you." Jaune couldn't help it; he was scared, but she was just being rude now.
Cinder still scowled at him. "Listen, I don't know who you think you ate-"
The door beside her clicked open, and Jaune had tne dubious honor of seeing the woman's expression go from threatening to annoyed in an instant. The blond blinked at the man who walked out, partially by the fact it was the same faunus from the coffee shop, but also because he realized how strikingly alike they looked.
"Are you two siblings?" Jaune's face flushed at how out of nowhere that came.
Cinder scowled at him, her answer an instant "No", while the man said "Yes."
The man gasped, holding a hand to his chest dramatically. He stared at Cinder with an exaggerated hurt in his eyes. "How can you say that? Did our wonderful mother not raise us side by side?"
Cinder scowled, clearly unwilling to play along. "Foster mother," she gritted out, "and you're nothing but a foster brother."
The man crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes. It was like a flip in personality. "How ungrateful you are, didn't I just about break my back hauling all you're luggage back here?"
Cinder sneered at him. "The car is ten feet outside, and it was only three suitcases."
"Details, meaningless drivel." The man said dismissively. Jaune nearly jumped when the man leaned towards him, tail swishing behind him, as though remembering he was there. "Though you're certainly not meaningless. How lovely it is to see you so soon."
Jaune furrowed his brow, confusion coursing through him. "Uh, thanks?" he hated how it came out, but he had no other way to convey it.
He was surprised; he didn't expect to see him either.
The man smiled, just as manic as it had been in the coffee shop. He crossed his arm over his waist, and bent like he was taking a bow, flourishing out his other arm. "Twice in two days; why, it must be fate-or simply good timing."
Cinder glanced to the side in irritation, and if Jaune didn't think she was above it, she might have even rolled her eyes. "This isn't your theatre troupe, so why don't you talk like a normal person?"
"Dear sister, why would I do that when being normal is overrated?" The man asked.
Cinder glared at him. "Don't call me that. I am not your sister." she hissed, and without a word she stormed back into the room. An awkward pause followed, but then Cinder peered back out, another scowl on her lips. "And get out of here, people might think you're my brother like this fool does." she snapped before shutting the door, and a pointed lock click followed.
Sighing, the man shook his head as though he was dealing with a child's tantrum. He smiled at Jaune like nothing happened. "So, my dear boy, are you doing anything later?"
Jaune blinked, his insides churning as dizziness made him go light-heated. Did...did he just get asked out? "Did you just ask me out?"
The man raised a brow. "Is that not the proper etiquette one goes with when someone catches their interest?"
What? Jaune clenched his jaw, his mouth refusing to move as he tried to decipher what had just been said. True, a date was just a way to gauge compatibility, but Jaune had always thought it was more...romantic. Movies told him that: you like someone, you go out, and it went from there.
Jaune...felt none of that. Maybe the man thought he was cute, but the blond had no idea what to think. "I...need some time to think it over. This is really sudden."
The man held up a hand. "Ah, say no more. Take all the time you need, I can be very patient."
"Thanks," Jaune rubbed the back of his neck, "but the thing is this is, well, really sudden. I don't even know your name!"
The man blinked, his form faltering as one hand slapped the side of his head. "No wonder this must be awkward for you. Why, here I am blathering on and we've never once introduced ourselves properly. My name is Tyrian, and you are?"
Jaune was bemused, confused, every kind of 'fused' as he wasn't quite sure what to think still. Still, being odd wasn't any concern for alarm. "Jaune."
"Ah, such an apt name, it matches your hair so perfectly."
Jaune self-consciously touched a lock of his hair. "I guess my parents ran out of names by the time I came along then."
"There's nothing to be ashamed of, it's a nice shade of yellow." Tyrian replied. He turned on his heel, and waved one hand behind him. ""Til we meet again."
Jaune blinked, but before he could day anything, the faunus had already left. "Huh, that was kind of weird."